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audit

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

5 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "audit", 5-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "audit" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "audit" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

audit is aEnglishnoun. It means: A judicial examination. Pronounced /ˈɔː.dɪt/. It ranks #6,652 in English word frequency. Often confused with aunt and Aust.

Key facts for audit
PropertyValue
Headwordaudit
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɔː.dɪt/
Letters5
Frequency rank#6,652
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs15
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of audit in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for audit is 5 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈɔː.dɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #6,652 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text.Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 6 documented wrong-spelling variants for audit, with forms such as "aduit", "auddit", and "auditt". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 15 confusable-pair relationships, "aunt", "Aust", "await", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin audītus, from audiō (“I hear”). Sense of “examine” was because examinations were originally presented orally, and the examiner listened. Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is audit, spelled A-U-D-I-T, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A judicial examination.
  2. 2
    An examination in general.
  3. 3
    An independent review and examination of records and activities to assess the adequacy of system controls, to ensure compliance with established policies and operational procedures, and to recommend necessary changes in controls, policies, or procedures
  4. 4
    The result of such an examination, or an account as adjusted by auditors; final account.
  5. 5
    Spiritual counseling, which forms the core of Dianetics.
  6. 6
    A general receptacle or receiver.
  7. 7
    An audience; a hearing.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin audītus, from audiō (“I hear”). Sense of “examine” was because examinations were originally presented orally, and the examiner listened.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: aduit,auddit,auditt,audti,auidt,uadit

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for audit

Misspelling Variants of "audit"

aduit5auddit6auditt6audti5auidt5uadit5
Misspelling Variants of "audit"

Frequency rank: #6,652 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "audit"?
"audit" is spelled A-U-D-I-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɔː.dɪt/.
What does "audit" mean?
As a noun, "audit" means: A judicial examination.
What words are commonly confused with "audit"?
"audit" is commonly confused with "aunt", "Aust", "await". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "audit"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "audit" is /ˈɔː.dɪt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "audit"?
Borrowed from Latin audītus, from audiō (“I hear”). Sense of “examine” was because examinations were originally presented orally, and the examiner listened. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter A in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.